I Love Lamp: Hotel Libraries

I was poking around Hotel Chatter the other day (because a promotional poster I designed for NU Hotel's new Sleep It Off package made the site) and I came across this great bit comparing the libraries of two new, very cool hotels here in New York: NoMad and The Wythe. NoMad is a luxurious slice of hotel life on 28th St. and Broadway. When it first opened last year I read something about the rooms being designed to feel like a mix of the New York and Parisian apartment you wished you always had. YES.

Needless to say, their Library--which is also part of their bar-- is splendid.

I went and had drinks there this summer with my Mom. We sat on the couch on the bottom left of the photo and drank classy cocktails with egg whites in them and whatnot. It was DEFINITELY not this dark, which I must say, would be very not reading friendly.

There are 3,500 books in The Library, all hand picked by Thatcher Wine who owns Juniper Books in Boulder. He says he picked them all while "working closely with the developers, designers, and restaurant operators". All the titles on the lower level were "chosen by subject and is organized that way - entire sections of books about France, New York, music, wine and food, etc."

I must admit I remember the cocktails better than the book selections, if only because the vibe was unfortunately very "do not touch".

On the other end of the spectrum is the library at The Wythe, that hotel in an former textile factory in Williamsburg that I'm jonesin to have a staycation at. Let's take a gander at their gorgeous rooms again, shall we?

Their library is decidedly less formal than that of NoMad, chock full of Idiot's Guide To's, Hardy Boys, Snookie biographies, and board games:

Kudos for the hip/kitch selections that very much reflect the playful air of Williambsurg but DEAR GOD what is happening with the display strategy here? For a hotel that otherwise looks like it was styled down to the seams, this just looks... kind of slap dash.

Before I go, here's one last hotel library thought: did you know there is a place in Midtown called The Library Hotel that is inspired by the Dewey Decimal System? According to their website:

Each of the 10 guestroom floors honor one of the 10 categories of the Dewey Decimal System and each of the 60 rooms are uniquely adorned with a collection of books and art exploring a distinctive topic within the category it belongs to.

I was all revved up to learn about the Dewey Decimal categories and the book selections in each room, but I just cannot for the life of me find out any actual book information on the website. It's all about free Wi-Fi and continental breakfast. Ah well. Someone will just have to stay there and tell me about it.

(All photos via each hotel's website, excluding the Wythe Hotel library ones which are from Hotel Chatter.)

(What is I Love Lamp? This is I Love Lamp.)